Abuse reports probed in Libya

by Simon Denyer - Apr. 28, 2011 12:00 AMWashington Post

TRIPOLI, Libya - A team of U.N. investigators met with Libyan officials here Wednesday and said it will be seeking answers to allegations that Moammar Gadhafi's government has committed human-rights violations.

As the team began its work, Gadhafi's forces resumed bombarding the port in Misrata with Russian-made truck-mounted Grad missiles, disrupting the delivery of humanitarian aid to the besieged rebel-held city, as well as evacuation of the wounded.

"We have a number of questions dealing with indiscriminate bombing of civilian areas, civilian casualties, torture and the use of mercenaries and other questions," said Cherif Bassiouni, an Egyptian legal expert and member of the U.N. commission, Reuters news service reported.

In Misrata, rebels had warned that their hard-won gains of the past week would be at risk unless NATO stepped up its aerial assistance. On Wednesday, they were slightly happier, after NATO airstrikes pounded Gadhafi's forces attacking the port and forced them to withdraw.

"Several NATO aircraft were directed to the area, and following careful assessment of the risk to civilians, our pilots struck," NATO spokeswoman Carmen Romero said in Brussels, Belgium.

Damage assessments showed that six military vehicles and seven "technicals" (civilian trucks equipped with machine guns or rocket launchers) were hit. One surface-to-air missile site near Misrata was destroyed, Romero said.

The bombardment of the port by Gadhafi's forces in the past two days has worsened the humanitarian situation in the city, the European Union's commissioner for humanitarian aid said in Brussels.

"The port shelling hampers vessel rotation and therefore hinders further evacuations," Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva said. "The delivery of food, medical supplies and other relief items has been interrupted, and it is close to impossible for our humanitarian partners to evacuate the wounded and civilians by sea."

Nevertheless, the International Organization for Migration said it had taken advantage of a lull in the shelling to evacuate 935 foreign workers and Libyans to the rebel stronghold of Benghazi.

The Libyan government routinely denies even using artillery, rockets or mortar shells in Misrata, an assertion disputed by human-rights groups, aid agencies and video evidence.

It says that it is fighting armed gangs and al-Qaida militants in the city, that the port is being used to bring in arms and terrorists and that residents are being held hostage by the rebels.

In Washington, Gene Cretz, U.S. ambassador to Libya, gave an official blessing to the chief Libyan opposition group, opening the way for closer ties but not necessarily recognition as the country's legitimate government.